Lands Minister Initiates Repeal of L.I. 2462 to Protect Reserves and Combat Galamsey
The Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, Hon. Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, in his additional capacity as acting Minister for Environment, Science and Technology, has formally requested the Office of the Attorney-General to revoke Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2462 and its amended version, L.I. 2501.
The regulation, passed in 2022, provided the legal framework for granting mining licences in selected forest reserves. It has since faced sustained criticism from environmental advocates, who argue that it enabled widespread degradation of Ghana’s forest ecosystems and water bodies.
According to a statement issued by the Lands Ministry’s Director of Communications, Ama Mawusi Mawuenyefia, the Attorney-General has raised no objection to the request, clearing the path for the repeal. The Minister stressed that scrapping the law will not create a regulatory vacuum, as the Environmental Protection Agency’s existing framework is deemed sufficient to govern mining activities and enforce compliance with environmental standards.
“This decisive legislative action is a cornerstone of government’s enhanced strategy to combat illegal mining,” the statement noted, adding that revocation of the law would unify the regulatory framework and strengthen institutional coordination in the fight against galamsey.
The move aligns with broader initiatives, including the Responsible Cooperative Mining and Skills Development Programme (rCOMSDEP) and the operational work of the National Anti-Illegal Mining Operations Secretariat (NAIMOS), aimed at addressing the social and economic dimensions of small-scale mining while protecting the environment.
L.I. 2462 — officially the Environmental Protection (Mining in Forest Reserves) Regulation — was introduced in 2022 without public consultation. Despite provisions for environmental management, critics argued that it gave undue leeway for mining in protected reserves, threatening biodiversity and undermining Ghana’s climate commitments.
By revoking the law, government says it seeks to “make our waters blue and our forests green once more,” signalling a firmer stance against environmental destruction linked to illegal and poorly regulated mining activities.
